Biden's efforts aim at halting an increase in gas prices within the United States.
In a bid to keep gasoline prices low for consumers and check inflation, the Biden administration used the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) in 2022 to release a record 180–200 million barrels of oil. This emergency drawdown was aimed at alleviating the spike in gasoline prices caused by the 2022 Ukraine war and related global energy supply disruptions.
Amos Hochstein, the Energy advisor to the US President, made these comments in an interview with a newspaper. He promised to ensure the market is well-supplied and stated that there is enough oil in the SPR if needed. The goal was to prevent gasoline price hikes this summer.
The release of oil from the SPR functioned as a crisis management tool to provide relief on oil and gas prices in the short term, which arguably could help reduce inflationary pressures affecting consumers. However, these massive drawdowns also caused long-term structural damage to SPR infrastructure, including salt cavern compaction that diminished storage capacity by roughly 5%, requiring costly repairs and complicating future refilling efforts.
Despite these challenges, the administration continued to use SPR crude oil in targeted ways in 2025, such as exchanges with ExxonMobil to address refinery supply issues. However, these moves were smaller and more operational rather than large-scale releases aimed at price control.
The Biden administration's 2022 Strategic Petroleum Reserve releases constitute a clear strategic effort to moderate fuel prices and inflation in the run-up to the midterms, consistent with crisis management amid geopolitical shocks. This approach has had significant consequences for the SPR’s long-term capacity and future energy security.
It is worth noting that the US President's advisor did not discuss the potential impact on gasoline prices in the future or the impact of these actions on inflation. Furthermore, the intention was to provide the lowest possible prices for American consumers, but the advisor did not mention a new target volume for the strategic reserve or the November 8th election date. The White House is also taking steps to continue purchasing oil until next year.
[1] CNN, 2022
[2] The New York Times, 2022
[3] The Washington Post, 2025
- The release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) by the Biden administration in 2022 was a strategic attempt to mitigate fuel prices and inflation, as reported by CNN in 2022.
- Amidst the geopolitical shocks of the 2022 Ukraine war, the Biden administration, through the SPR, implemented finance policies aimed at controlling energy prices, a topic covered by The New York Times in 2022.
- In 2025, The Washington Post revealed that the Biden administration's decision to use SPR crude oil in targeted ways, such as exchanges with ExxonMobil, was part of a broader policy-and-legislation approach to address energy supply challenges in the context of domestic politics.
